Florida, Michigan Delegate Counts Still Issue for US Democratic Party

When the U.S. Democratic Party holds its convention this August in the city of Denver, Colorado, one issue likely to take center stage will be how to include delegates from the states of Florida and Michigan.

The Democratic National Committee stripped Florida and Michigan of their right to send delegates to the convention after they broke party rules by holding primary elections too early in the nominating process. Florida Democrats decided recently not to hold a second primary.

Democratic candidate Senator Hillary Clinton has called on Michigan to hold a second primary election so the state's delegates to the nominating committee can participate in the selection of a presidential candidate. Her Democratic rival, Senator Barack Obama, has questioned the practicality of the suggestion.

Senator Clinton easily won both primaries and wants to restore the delegates to both states based on the results, which would give her a boost in the delegate count. She has said it would not be fair if a candidate won the party nomination without counting the Michigan and Florida votes. Senator Obama holds a slight lead in the number of pledged delegates who will choose a nominee.

More than two million Democrats voted in the two primaries, and elected officials in both states are urging the national party to either let the results stand or find a way to hold new elections.

Neither of the candidates campaigned in Florida or Michigan because of the penalties imposed by the national party. Obama's name was not on the ballot in Michigan. There are a total of 366 delegates from the two states.